Shihan

Shihan (師範) is a Japanese title, often used in budo. The word means teacher or model.

Its primary definition is "One who brings water," explaining where the title came from.

Various budo arts and organisations have different requirements for the usage of the title, but in general it is a high title that takes many years to achieve. It is sometimes associated with certain rights, such as the right to give out dan ranks in the name of the organisation.

While westerners want to know specifically what makes a person into a shihan, the process of becoming a shihan can be rather abstruse in Japan. For instance, within the Bujinkan it has been said that you become a shihan when the other shihan start calling you a shihan. However, it is often common to call all teachers with at least 10th dan a shihan - at least if he is Japanese. Similarly, within the aikido organisation Aikikai a Japanese teacher automatically became a shihan at sixth dan but it was long unclear whether westerners with the same rank also held the title. Finally, the Aikikai headquarters declared that westerners needed not only the rank of sixth dan but also a special appointment to become a shihan.

See also: Japanese martial arts titles.